Stagnant Water of Apocalypse - Chapter 226

Chapter 226 – The Murder Is Planned (2)

I heard what happened in Korea Shelter from Mi-kyung. It was the worst division in the history of the Korea Shelter since its establishment. The cause was Seokhyun’s action. It seemed that the massacre he caused made a lot of people uncomfortable to an extreme degree. Not only that, they all seemed to think that maybe someday, they would become the receiving end of Seokhyun’s action.

“They don’t know that they are not worth it.”

According to Mi-kyung, most of the people who hated him were office workers. In this apocalypse, regardless of the availability of office work, there was still a need for it to exist. After all, when someone didn’t have a combat-oriented unique ability, they were usually in charge of office work or chores. Their lives would be relatively safe, but there was a downside of them being oblivious to the atmosphere of the field.

Just like what happened in the Korea Shelter right now.

“You should be there to know the atmosphere.” Hundreds of Koreans and Chinese confronted each other across the Gimpo Airport regardless of the cause. It was such a bloody atmosphere that would turn into a full blown war in a matter of time.

Actually, if that’s the only reason for the current problem, I wouldn’t be bothered to think about it. However, there’s a report that Lee Beom-seok had gone out of shelter to meet Go Ho-Kyung.

In normal circumstances, I doubt that she would be able to influence him. However, since he was depressed and a bit drunk at that time, the story would be different. He was also convinced that we had a misunderstanding about Giudecca.

-He’s really an idiot… So what does Go Ho-kyung say?
-That person…
-Not a person, but a monster. What kind of person would have tentacles popping out of their neck
-Ah, yes. Anyway, that monster just made it clear that they are not humanity’s enemy. It also said that humanity will later understand their intention…
-Could you elaborate on that part?

It’s quite long, so I listened to the explanation for a while.

To sum it up:

-Our purpose is not different from yours.
-If you want to survive the monster apocalypse, it is impossible to just try to survive blindly.
-Therefore, we changed our thinking and chose coexistence with monsters.
-In the process, various advantages such as longer lifespan and increased combat power came along.
-We call ourselves ‘Neo-humans’.

I almost laughed at the ‘Neo-humans’ part.

Their body had the ability to turn into a monster and drop a large amount of points as well as skills when they died, So how can they call themselves Neo-humans? It would be more convincing to tell people that tigers were herbivores.

Mikyung summarized the rest.

-We are the people chosen by Giudecca.
-What Giudecca wants is perseverance, not destruction.
-He wants to create a new civilization based on the ‘Neo-human’ race.
-There will be no more offers once it’s too late.
-Uh… That’s all, oppa.
-What does Lee Beom-seok say?
-He didn’t show much reaction, he just listened quietly.
-Didn’t you see what happened at the scene?
-Yes. They talked a bit and parted ways. I waited for two hours thinking something would happen next… But nothing.

She’d been waiting in the alley for two hours?

I praised Mi-kyung as gently as possible.

-It must have been very difficult. Good job and thank you.
-Hehe
-Anyway, the shelter is still quiet, right?
-Yes. It’s not nice, but it’s still okay.

Then, I had to wait and see for now.

Soon, the quest system would start appearing, and if I get involved in the problem before it, It would be hard to know what kind of situation I would find myself in. I would have to make a plan first.

-Tell the others to not go out for a while. Ji-man should stay in Bam Island, and if there’s something urgent, you should go, Mikyung. Just be careful and come back quickly.
-What about you, Oppa?
-I can’t open the dimensional door right now because of something.

My prediction that the Ezekium Empire is very well-versed with ether was correct. These guys had laid something similar to a force field that neutralizes the ether near the garrison quarter. Thanks to that, I couldn’t use any of my additional effects, including the dimensional door. Of course, I could use it again once I went out of the area, but it didn’t change the fact that the force field was problematic.

Currently, Seokhyun and Captain Scarab were scouting the vicinity of the Ezekium Garrison using a drone.

-For the time being, me and Seokhyun will rotate our sleep time, so contact me anytime.
-Oppa, please come quickly.
-Da-jeong and Geom-in are in the south. If something happens, take refuge in the forest and both of them will surely come.

In our dormitory at the Korea Shelter, my second dimensional door was connected to the forest where our base once located. The infrastructure had all been demolished, but the site remains. There were tents there though, so if needed, people could go there and rest anytime.

I wanted to go to the Korea Shelter and kill Lee Beom-seok right away, but there was no justification for it at all. It’s a little hard to find a justification in this situation. On top of it, he’s Jang Won-taek’s closest aide. That means we couldn’t just kill him.

In other words, I need to wait until he does something stupid.

“No, wait…”

There’s a saying that you can turn a crisis into opportunity, right?

Soon, the quest system will be activated. I felt like maybe I could make Lee Beom-seok into a villain using the bugs that even the game developers weren’t aware of.

But… Does Jang Won-taek know about it too?

When I asked Mi-kyung, she said it was the first time she heard of it. Meaning, it’s not easy to access information within the higher ranks of the Korea Shelter.

I called Hyung-jun hyung.

-Hyung, you’re listening to what we are discussing just now, right?
-I heard everything.
-What is the atmosphere like in your opinion?
-It’s very bad, but not to a serious level. I don’t think anything will explode anytime soon.

It’s not like Lee Beom-seok had gotten anything from Go Ho-kyung, so it’s still too early for me to step up. Even if I wanted to prevent an accident from happening, the signs that it would inevitably happen had to be visible first. I couldn’t just kill everyone for a simple matter of ostracizing.

I organized my thoughts and wrote,

-Please inform Jang Won-taek that I will see Lee Beom-seok’s action first before taking action.
-Ah, we can just wait while going back and forth through the forest?
-Yes. Leave everything in the woods. If you feel like you’re going to get into a fight, just fight and tell me.
-I get it.

If it’s Hyung-jun hyung, he’ll do it well without a doubt. He’s not an extreme person like me, but he’s the type of person who gets along well with everyone.

I swiped the auction house away and looked up at the sky. A drone was flying over the Ezekium Garrison at the bottom of the hill. It looks just like a bird.

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Da-jeong and Geom-in rejoined us and arrived near the Ezekium Garrison. We gathered in the cave and discussed our next move.

“Even the elves have never seen those fruits and seeds. They say they don’t even know much about Elderwood since a lot of their knowledge about it was sourced from legends and myths passed down by their ancestors.” Geom-in explained.

“In other words, they knew something but don’t really know whether it’s real or not, huh?”

“For now, let’s just plant it. But the location is a little troublesome.”
Da-jeong intervened. The place she pointed to was a plateau quite far from the Ezekium Garrison. It’s a tall terrain similar to the Table Mountain, and was said to be the home of the stag beetles.

Well, it’s good up to this point… But,

“The elves won’t be doing anything?” I looked at the two in turn.

“They say they can’t move because they’re busy protecting Velond Forest from monsters.”

“That means that they regard their hometown as something more precious than Elderwood, isn’t it?” I really didn’t like the way they asked us to do things just because the direction we were going was the same.

Then Geom-in took something out of her dimensional backpack.

“Amelia-nim gave it to us as a gift.”

After opening it, we could see ether stone and ores inside. Seemed like the elves worked hard to collect it.

“Well…” There’s nothing I couldn’t do if they choose to show us their sincerity in this manner.

We sat down together to have a meal and talked as the night went deeper.

“Lee Beom-seok, that bastard, will definitely cause an accident.”

“Will his level get higher like those Chinese in the Great Labyrinth?”

“I don’t think so for now. After all, from what Mi-kyung said, he didn’t do anything except for hearing a story from Go Ho-Kyung.”

As soon as Seokhyun heard that, he raised his fist.

“Let’s kill him.”

“It is not that serious yet.”

“We can just kill him before things get serious.”

“Let’s just do it later when the quest system starts appearing. We can kill him by turning him into a villain.”

Da-jeong looked into my eyes and asked.

“Why? Just let Rapwi kidnap him and kill him. If he dies, his followers will be kicked out.”

“We should at least have a justification. We can’t blindly break apart the Korea Shelter just for one guy.”

I did not deny Jang Won-taek’s idea of making Korea Shelter a home for mankind. If I had denied that, I wouldn’t have helped him up until now. The most important thing was that the Korea Shelter should not be broken even if it was shaken to the core since they should be the main point for survivors in Korea. Above all, it would be a headache for the huge amount of materi-I mean, the shelter to be destroyed.

Da-jeong tilted her head.

“Since there was no reward for that quest system back in the game, no one did it, right?”

“Some of the newbies worked hard on it. However, it soon became a problem because of the trolls.” (T/N Trolls, as in…players, not monsters.)

Quest system was a feature that was introduced midway through Survival Life. There was no compensation for those who did it. No, to be precise, they gave experience, but no items were given. Thanks to that, there were only a handful of newbies who did it. Then, trolls who wanted to bully newbies intervened and ruined it. Meanwhile, I was in a position to troll the troll.

“There is nothing great about the quests that appear in the beginning. At most it was only farming quests and capture quests.” I said.

“I also worked hard when the quest first came out. If I remembered correctly, it was that golden goblin quest…” Geom-in nodded.

“Do you still feel like doing it even when there was no reward?”

“I didn’t expect it to give me anything in the first place.”

“The quest system was revamped in the Unknown Monsters expansion patch. You guys didn’t know because you already quit.”

“Ah…”

Thanks to you guys quitting the game, I went through the hardships of catching a Brutra all by myself.

Geom-in asked me, “If Ahn Geun-seok launches a quest too, It will be a big deal.”

“I doubt it. After all, this apocalypse is just the realization of their plan.” If Ahn Geun-seok controlled the system, I would have been either killed or captured a long time ago.

“So how are you planning to make Lee Beom-seok a villain…”

I explained how to make Lee Beom-seok into a villain using a bug in the quest system.

Da-jeong shook her head excitedly at my explanation.

“You know, at one point, I thought Rapwi was the craziest guy alive, but he’s miles away from you, Seongho.”

“Don’t try to compete with me in terms of craziness. Anyway, here’s what I think. It’s getting harder to convince Lee Beom-seok now, and if that’s the case, I’ll have to use it.”

Seokhyun smiled widely.

“So, this is basically a planned murder? Good.”

The guy had an aversion to us, and after colliding with Jang Won-taek, he finally gathered people. If he steps back now, he would not be able to properly voice himself in the future. Therefore, it seemed that he decided to just go along with the line that he had drawn.

I made a list of things to do next.

“Seokhyun and Captain Scarab should continue scouting this place and make a map. Da-jeong and Geom-in should go to the plateau with the stag beetle and plant the Elderwood seed.”

Da-jeong opened her eyes and looked at me. Judging by the expression, it seemed like she disagreed with my instruction.

“Somehow, it feels like we’re the only ones wandering around, doesn’t it?”

“Let’s finish this and live by the lakeside later. I had sent Little Fist there too.”

“Hmm… WIll it really be the end?”

I wonder…

I desperately averted her gaze.

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“The quest system will start soon, huh…”

“There is a high probability that Lee Beom-seok will become a villain. All I want to ask is that you keep it under wraps until then.”

“…will everything be resolved if I keep it under wraps?”

“Of course not. If Lee Beom-seok dies, his followers will be in the same situation.”

“What about this shelter?”

“It depends, but it won’t be the same as usual. After all, there will be fewer people.”

Jang Won-taek covered his haggard and depressed face with his hands.

“I heard that the Chief Secretary met Go Ho-kyung. According to rumors going around among people, he refused her.”

“Did you really believe so?”

“…”

Jang Won-taek took a cigarette out of his box and lit it up in his mouth. When he inhaled the smoke, a violent cough erupted.

“The cigarettes are too heavy these days.”

“I’m not the type to advise people, but I think it would be better for you to quit smoking.”

“Haha… what more could I ask for at this age?”

“I heard you want to officiate a wedding.”

“Whoa… now that I think about it, it sounds like a dream.” Jang Won-taek exhaled smoke and complained.

“I can feel it clearly these days in the meeting. He said that he’s wondering if we can really create a new civilization, a safe city…”

“Did Lee Beom-seok really say that?” He weakly nodded his head.

“He said that as the setting of the game progresses, more and more people die. If we go on like this, a lot of people except for those who were around Seongho will die, he said…”

“If you didn’t do anything stupid, they wouldn’t die.”

“The human heart is not so easy to tame…”

People were afraid of me and Seokhyun. On top of it, they also harbor envy and inferiority complexes. It was something that was close to instinct and they couldn’t control it.

Monsters such as Ahn Geun-seok and Go Ho-kyung tried to convince me to join their cause, but when that didn’t work, they started digging into other people’s hearts. Unless they’re an idiot, they won’t succumb to that temptation, but when someone is cornered, they will take any chance they get.

My plan now was simple. Since it was certain that Lee Beom-seok would join Giudecca’s side, I would use that fact.

“Or I could just kill him right away.”

In an instant, Jang Won-taek’s eyes widened.

“Y-you can’t do that. Absolutely not.”

It was the first time that he, who was normally calm, had been so flustered. It only means that Lee Beom-seok’s existence was that precious to him.

“I can’t kill him, but I also can’t leave him alone. So, what should we do?”

“Let’s wait a little longer… He might change his mind…”

“I can’t wait long. As soon as the quest system starts appearing, I will make him a villain.”

Of course, this plan was not definitive. That was because quests always appear randomly. However, if there’s a prominent presence like Lee Beom-seok, subjugation quests would definitely appear.

Jang Won-taek bowed his head at my notification.

“I will try my best to convince him.”

I left his office and walked the streets of the shelter. As soon as I came to the Korea Shelter, all the ostracizing that my sister-in-law suffered disappeared. However, all the uncomfortable words and actions did not disappear. Some people even opted to have no contact with us at all. This covert bullying was honestly not easy to protest.

I sat on a bench and looked at the people passing by. They quickly turned their head away, but I could immediately sense that their gaze was not a favorable gaze.

“Son of bitches.”

The voice was so loud that people were startled.

“You all couldn’t speak in front of me, but keep flapping your mouth behind my back. What a waste of resources.”

“If it wasn’t for Seokhyun, you guys would be killed by the Chinese, not by the monsters.”

“Does the world look good when you’re only stuck in the shelter? Why don’t you go out and fight the Chinese yourself?”

At one point, there were no people on the street. As they couldn’t refute, they just stopped listening.

I sighed and raised my head, but someone approached me.

It was Lee Beom-seok.